How to Submit Materials to Dragonfly

For All Submissions, We Seek:
Writing from your own point of view. Material from third-grade through lower middle school students. Material on upcoming Dragonfly themes. Submit only your very best work. Use language that is sensitive to both boys and girls as well as to people from various cultural, economic, racial, and geographic backgrounds. A self-addressed, stamped envelope, if you want material returned. A respect for nature. Imagination, love of learning, and fun.

Features Appearing in Every Issue:
Child Inquiry Articles: The heart of Dragonfly is child-written articles about their individual or classroom research on the theme of each issue. These articles should: be approximately 400-800 words; begin with interesting questions and predictions that are at least partially inspired by your curiosity; provide details on the methods and processes used to address the question; include data and results from the inquiry; include interpretation of your results and conclusions; include diagrams, graphs, pie charts, or other illustrations where needed; include, when possible, color photos, preferably slides, of you and/or your class engaged in the inquiry.

We celebrate good questions and investigations, rather than science as "following directions." Avoid cookbook science and static "activities." Making a leaf collection, for example, would not be sufficient unless the leaf collection answers a particular question, or unless it generated certain questions and investigations. Also, tell us of your different predictions, different possible methods for their study, different interpretations of their findings. What went wrong? What surprised you? Science is rarely perfect or undisputed--when it is, it is usually boring. We value students' reasons for conducting their inquiries and their personal feelings. (We prefer inquiries generated by students and teachers or parents, but if the inquiry came from, or was based on, a suggestion in a book or other publication, please include the title, author, and publication information with your submission.)

Narratives, poems, stories:
Creative writing allows students to explore further the theme of each issue of Dragonfly. Stories and narratives should include a coherent plot or theme, concrete and sensory description, a logical structure, and clear, grammatically correct sentences. Poems should be evocative and include concrete imagery. We also are open to creative blendings of science and poetry, story or narrative, as long as it is not misleading.

Submissions should be based on careful observations of nature and on real facts. Please avoid "talking animal" stories and other forms of anthropomorphism; Submissions should be approximately 200 words in length.

Original Artwork: Pictures, diagrams, charts, or graphs should be drawn on unlined paper using rich, opaque colors or black and white. Do not use pencils (colored or otherwise) because pencils don't reproduce well. Artwork can accompany student inquiry articles, stories, poems, and essays or stand on its own.

Jokes, Riddles, Puzzles: Make us laugh or scratch our heads. We enjoy puzzles of any kind. Jokes, riddles, etc. should be based on the issue's theme.

Looking Back: You can reflect on inquiries, stories, articles, etc. that have appeared in Dragonfly. Reflections can include suggestions for improving inquiries, better methods, ways in which you expanded an inquiry to pursue additional questions of your own, or personal reactions to articles, poems, artwork, etc. Submissions for "Looking Back" should: be written as a letter; include the name, age, and address of the author (letters from an entire class should include the teacher's and the school's name); be between 20-200 words in length.

You Can Also Submit:
The Dragonfly Interview: A child interviews a scientist. We have identified willing scientists to be interviewed; let us know if you have a student who would make a good interviewer. Or, if you know a local scientist who conducts research on one of the upcoming themes of Dragonfly, feel free to have a student or students interview him or her. The interview should: include a mix of personal and professional questions; this helps convey the personality of the scientist and dispel the myth that scientists are "cold" or "inhuman." Let the children have fun with their questions; be approximately 150 words in length.

Kids Speak Out: We want to hear the ideas, concerns, opinions you have about world issues. "Kids Speak Out" provides a forum for discussion; issues in this department have no clear right or wrong answers. This is a chance for you to explore the different sides of an issue, to think critically about solutions posed by others, to generate unique solutions of their own. Please select several of your strongest responses for submission. Try to include a range of opinions and contrasting ideas: Responses should be well-edited, cogent, and thought-provoking. Each of the responses you submit should be no more than 50 words apiece.

Nature and Me: Children compose an essay about a place in the natural world that is special to them in some way. It may inspire, comfort, or challenge them. It is a place that adds meaning to their lives. We use the term "place" in the broadest sense, it could be something as specific as a child's favorite tree, or as general as the feeling a child gets when walking in the woods on an autumn afternoon. We want children to explore the ways in which they are connected to nature and what that connection means. "Place in Nature" essays should: be approximately 200 words in length; include personal reflections; include detailed descriptions of sights, smells, sounds; be based on an upcoming theme of Dragonfly.

Kids' Book Review: Children review fiction or non-fiction children's books about one of the upcoming themes of Dragonfly. Some questions for students to think about: Did you find out anything new while reading this book? What was the best thing about this book? The worst? Did you relate to the characters and situations? Was the writing clear and understandable? Was the book well-organized? Be sure to include the title, author, publisher, publication date, and price with each review. Reviews should: be approximately 100 words in length; support assertions with examples. Explain why the book is funny, or informative, or boring; discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the illustrations; include the student's personal reactions to the book.

People of the World: Children from various backgrounds tell how the Dragonfly theme is viewed or studied in their cultures. They could describe holidays, ceremonies, or festivals that center on the Dragonfly theme, or simply discuss the significance of the theme in their culture. For example, a child of Inuit descent may write about the significance of snow in Inuit culture for the Ice and Snow issue of Dragonfly. Or a child of Japanese descent may write about the significance of kites in Japanese culture for the Flight issue of Dragonfly. Submissions should: be approximately 200 words in length; be based on an upcoming theme of Dragonfly.

Send your material to:
Dragonfly
Miami University
Oxford, OH 45056.

You may submit brief written materials by entering them in the box below. Please make sure you type your name; birthdate; street address; city, state and zip; and e-mail address in the box. That way, we'll know how to contact you if we select your submission.

Dragonfly Home

Subscribe

E-mail

About

Feedback

Hot Links

Help!

This document has been accessed 12,233 times since Monday, March 25, 1996 to May 28, 2002 on the MIAVX1 Server. It has been accessed 36 times since May 28, 2002 on this server.
This document was last modified on Tuesday, September 30, 2008 at 11:51:10.
Please send comments and suggestions to